Tipping the Cabin Steward

[Crazy For Cats]

Or ... did it disappear or get tossed in the trash? ... For these reasons we always use envelopes with names and hand them to the right people. Our spoken "thank you, you made our cruise special" always brings a smile.

 

 

 

Cheers!

 

 

There was no chance that the envelope got in the trash.

[cbr663]

I wish HAL would just include all tips in the price of the cruise which some cruise lines do. This whole topic and all the confusion about what to tip just disappears and you never think about tips at all' date=' before or during the cruise. It's done and paid for before you even get on the ship. (If you wish to do something extra for the crew there is a 'crew fund' you can contribute to which provides extras for all the crew to enjoy.)

 

Service does not suffer at all, if fact we found it better. Tips are not on the minds of pax or crew.[/quote']

 

I so agree. The very best service I have ever received has always been in establishments where no only were extra tips not required, but extra tipping was politely refused by the service providers. I wish HAL would adopt a similar policy. Have all crew politely refuse any and all additional tips and those wishing to pay more could either increase the HSC or contribute to a crew fund.

Edited May 9, 2015 by cbr663

[igraf]

Well put.

 

igraf

 

 

 

I think this is a debatable subject. When Holland America enacted the automatic tipping, we were all to think, gee thanks, we don't have to think about this anymore. Wow, we could forget the envelopes at the last night of the cruise and stress no more! Not really. This took on a life of it's own. Now, everyone is thinking that they should leave more than their account, and some people are thinking that this is just too confusing. My thinking is that you are tipping, every single day, and it's good tipping, so nothing to be ashamed about, so for the most part, if you want to leave well enough alone, so be it. I do. My goodness, so many go on about this, but it's not essential to tip more. Just don't remove the tips that are already in place with your onboard account and you are a good person.:)

[AZNative2000]

There was no chance that the envelope got in the trash.

Perhaps that's true for you, not for us.:(

 

Cheers!

[igraf]

I disagree. The hotel service charge removes the bother of individual tips but still motivates the crew to perform well.

 

The expensive cruise lines that include tips up front pay higher crew wages and strictly monitor the crew's performance. This would not work as well for a mass-market (lower cost) cruise line like HAL.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

I wish HAL would just include all tips in the price of the cruise which some cruise lines do. This whole topic and all the confusion about what to tip just disappears and you never think about tips at all' date=' before or during the cruise. It's done and paid for before you even get on the ship. (If you wish to do something extra for the crew there is a 'crew fund' you can contribute to which provides extras for all the crew to enjoy.)

 

Service does not suffer at all, if fact we found it better. Tips are not on the minds of pax or crew.[/quote']

[Lottie Linda]

You are correct, of course, but with such a negative view perhaps the best place for you is home. Absolutely stay away from Las Vegas!

 

Thank you for your kind insight.

 

I absolutely stay away from Las Vegas. The only reason any staff speaks is to angle a tip. Even the hotels themselves get their tip by charging a daily "resort fee".

 

I drove a taxi for 10 years, and I hated the whole tipping thing, too much like begging. I'm losing money if I pick up poor, elderly or infirmed- those people just don't tip. And don't get me started with tourists from certain countries. The worst are the ones who hint there is a big tip coming and then let me "keep the change". Gee thanks for the two quarters.

 

Pride in a job well done should be the determining factor as to who gets paid well. Not, who is able corner a customer and guilt him into a tip. Tipping turns people who have pride in their work into beggars.

[Lizzie68]

I always leave separate envelopes for the cabin and dining stewards.

 

We do that too. But strangely, we had a similar incident on this past cruise that was mentioned by another poster - the envelopes disappeared (I had left them on the counter when we went for breakfast) the room stewards had evidently been in and started the cleanup, and later when we saw them and said goodbye, they didn't mention the tip or say thanks. So now I am left wondering if the right people got them.:confused: However, we will continue to leave separate envelopes. For the dining stewards, we hand them directly to them on our last MDR dinner (which may not be the actual last night, so please don't judge if people do not turn up for the last night dinner, LOL).

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

We do that too. But strangely, we had a similar incident on this past cruise that was mentioned by another poster - the envelopes disappeared (I had left them on the counter when we went for breakfast) the room stewards had evidently been in and started the cleanup, and later when we saw them and said goodbye, they didn't mention the tip or say thanks. So now I am left wondering if the right people got them.:confused: However, we will continue to leave separate envelopes. For the dining stewards, we hand them directly to them on our last MDR dinner (which may not be the actual last night, so please don't judge if people do not turn up for the last night dinner, LOL).

 

To further amplify my original statement about leaving envelopes, I hand them to the dining stewards with their names on them and try to hand them to the cabin stewards but sometimes those two are hard to find at the end of a cruise so leave them on the bed the last night.

[Cruising-along]

Perhaps that's true for you, not for us.:(

 

Cheers!

 

How did you find out your tip envelopes went into the garbage? This has me worried...we try to hand our tip envelopes directly to our cabin stewards, but on our last cruise we left them on the bed the last night before we went to dinner. They were gone when we returned to the cabin later that night.

 

For the first time we didn't get a personal thank you from our cabin stewards. We didn't see one of them the next morning, but we did see his assistant. No mention of the tip, but he also was with another steward who was helping him change the linens on our bed. He may not have wanted to mention it when he was with someone else --- but now I'm wondering.

[cbr663]

I disagree. The hotel service charge removes the bother of individual tips but still motivates the crew to perform well.

 

The expensive cruise lines that include tips up front pay higher crew wages and strictly monitor the crew's performance. This would not work as well for a mass-market (lower cost) cruise line like HAL.

 

igraf

 

The challenge is that compensation studies have repeatedly shown that there is no direct connection between the service that a customer receives and the payment of a tip. A crew member not receiving a tip is no more an indication of poor performance than a crew member receiving a tip is any indication of superior performance. Passengers will vehemently argue that they tip for exceptional performance, but the reality is that they tip for many other reasons.

 

Some passengers tip for the simple fact that it is a cultural tradition. The old, "when in Rome" is embraced by many. These passengers tip irregardless of service. Others tip because of peer pressure - it would be embarrassing to be seen as cheap by their table mates or to be the topic of discussion on CC.

 

Some passengers tip because it is important to have the server's acceptance. These passengers feel it is important that the server believe that they can afford to be on this trip or that they are of a certain class. Keeping up appearances is very important to many passengers.

 

Some passengers tip because they feel sorry or pity the servers. These servers are away from their families for long periods of time and they must be rewarded for that. Other passengers tip to pay it forward or because they themselves once were paid in tips.

 

Others tip in the hope of receiving preferential treatment. A free drink, a heavy pour or someone looking the other way and not enforcing company policy are the ultimate goals.

 

Studies have even shown that some people tip based on personal biases - attractive people receive more tips, people of certain ethnic groups are tipped less, passengers who deem servers as being very similar to themselves are tipped more. It has even been shown that people who pay with credit cards tip more than those who pay with cash.

 

Different reasons for sure, but very few have to do with actually having received exceptional service. In fact, tipping has more to do with the reward that the passenger receives when providing the tip than the service received.

[Stratheden]

We don't use envelopes. We just quietly say thank you to our dining stewards in the dining room and hand them the money - no one would even notice.

 

We also hand our room stewards their money and tell them how much we appreciated what they did for us.

 

I can't see any need for envelopes.

[serendipity1499]

Hi y'all :) On two previous cruises, the automatic tipping policy had been implemented, so I didn't give our cabin steward an additional cash tip. On our cruise last year, however, we had a Neptune Suite, and our steward (and his assistant) were so amazing and took such great care of us that I really wanted to reward them, and so we gave them an additional tip.

 

However, I was (and am) clueless about what is a proper amount. An extra $20? $50? I just don't know. Any guidance?

 

(If I were rich, I would have thrown the guy at least $100 - he was that wonderful. But I'm not, and we're on a budget, so I'm looking for some "average" amounts. :) )

 

We always put our extra tip in an envelope with a thank you note! To me that is a much nicer way to do it..

 

Petnumber in April 2011 One of our Posters made a tipping Poll here on Cruise Critic asking the exact same question & everyone was able to post on the poll anonymously..

 

Not sure you can pull it up but I made a copy of it..This is the URL:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1400422&highlight=poll

 

This is what they were asked: Quote The amount can be subjective. In an attempt to standardize the average dollar amount, let's assume we're taking a 10 day cruise. We choose to tip the waiters and room stewards in addition to the automatic amount per day added to our ship board account. We'll also assume the room stewards and waiters provide the exceptional service we are accustomed to receiving. They have provided friendly, timely service, and fulfilled our every request. What would you tip each individual employee? Unquote

 

122 posters posted on this poll & these were the responses when I pulled it up:

 

1) 36.07% felt the auto tip was adequate

2) 13.93% would give from $10 to $19 extra

3) 20.49% would give $20-$29 extra

4) 3.28 % would give $30-$39 extra

5) 4.92% would give $40 -$49 extra

6) 11.48% would give $50-$69 extra

7) 2.46% would give $70 - $99 extra

8) 7.38% would give $100 extra

 

Note: This poll was posted April of 2011 & was for a 10 day cruise.. I think it was interesting to note that 70% of the responses were in the first three categories.. Wonder what the responses would be today..

[serendipity1499]

To further amplify my original statement about leaving envelopes, I hand them to the dining stewards with their names on them and try to hand them to the cabin stewards but sometimes those two are hard to find at the end of a cruise so leave them on the bed the last night.

 

We actually leave our cabin a bit earlier (late dinner) when we go for our last dinner & track down our Cabin Stewards.. If we only find one we ask where the other one can be found.. We had them each an envelope & thank them for the excellent service..

 

We've been on many cruises, some on several other lines & only once did not give extra to our cabin steward, because he just did the minimum.. I'm happy to say that it was not on HAL..

[serendipity1499]

We always put our extra tip in an envelope with a thank you note! To me that is a much nicer way to do it..

 

Petnumber in April 2011 One of our Posters made a tipping Poll here on Cruise Critic asking the exact same question & everyone was able to post on the poll anonymously..

 

Not sure you can pull it up but I made a copy of it..This is the URL:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1400422&highlight=poll

 

This is what they were asked: Quote The amount can be subjective. In an attempt to standardize the average dollar amount, let's assume we're taking a 10 day cruise. We choose to tip the waiters and room stewards in addition to the automatic amount per day added to our ship board account. We'll also assume the room stewards and waiters provide the exceptional service we are accustomed to receiving. They have provided friendly, timely service, and fulfilled our every request. What would you tip each individual employee? Unquote

 

122 posters posted on this poll & these were the responses when I pulled it up:

 

1) 36.07% felt the auto tip was adequate

2) 13.93% would give from $10 to $19 extra

3) 20.49% would give $20-$29 extra

4) 3.28 % would give $30-$39 extra

5) 4.92% would give $40 -$49 extra

6) 11.48% would give $50-$69 extra

7) 2.46% would give $70 - $99 extra

8) 7.38% would give $100 extra

 

Note: This poll was posted April of 2011 & was for a 10 day cruise.. I think it was interesting to note that 70% of the responses were in the first three categories.. Wonder what the responses would be today..

 

This poll has changed since I printed it! Now 222 people have answered it.. I had forgotten that I actually resurrected it in 2012.. It would be great If someone would try to do another poll.. Note there will be those who criticize but don't pay any attention to the critics..

[POA1]

We don't use envelopes. We just quietly say thank you to our dining stewards in the dining room and hand them the money - no one would even notice.

 

We also hand our room stewards their money and tell them how much we appreciated what they did for us.

 

I can't see any need for envelopes.

 

We're huge fans of the thank you cards, hand written notes and... yes.. envelopes. We are partial to stationery from Crane & Company (Dalton, Mass.)

 

While I realize that we could pass bare bills, sail a paper airplane made from cash, or make an origami $20 sculpture, it's just not how we roll.

 

As long as you take care of the people who take care of you, that's all that matters. The envelopes and note cards just add that something special (IMO) and allow us to practice our penmanship. It also keeps the hardworking men and women in the New England paperwork industry employed.

 

Also, we've convinced ourselves that we're classy with our cotton bond cards. :D

[ski ww]

At the end of the cruise we personely thank our cabin stewards & our table waiters and give them a little some thing extra, normally $20.

Allan & Marlane

[sail7seas]

We always give tip envelopes in hand to Conceriges, Dining Stewards and any bar staff/cellarmaster. The few times we did not see our cabin stewards, we left an envelope for each on the bed with each name on their envelope. The one time we were not thanked by them, we didn't think it out of line to ask if they received it okay. We thanked them for taking such nice care of us and then gently asked if they had received the envelope. They had and they then thanked us. It is rare for them to 'need prodding' but I chalked it up to an extremely hectic morning for them. Just about anything that could go wrong for the stewards had that day. They were overworked and stressed. We were very sure the amount in the envelopes was more than pleasing to them. :)

 

I see nothing wrong with verifying with them they actually received the envelope and wonder why those who were not thanked didn't ask?

 

Edited May 9, 2015 by sail7seas

[Cruising-along]

.....

 

I see nothing wrong with verifying with them they actually received the envelope and wonder why those who were not thanked didn't ask?

 

 

My case was a little different, we just didn't see our cabin steward the next morning (extremely busy, as you said). We did see his assistant, but he was with another steward, very busy, so we didn't want to say anything to him then. We didn't see him again.

 

I'm sure they were just very, very busy, and like I said it was just one time this happened. I think if we had seen them a few times we definitely would have asked.

[Lizzie68]

<snip>

I see nothing wrong with verifying with them they actually received the envelope and wonder why those who were not thanked didn't ask?

 

 

 

Perhaps because we don't all think alike.

[POA1]

There's nothing wrong with beating the rush and tipping your room stewards two or three days before the cruise ends. By that point in the voyage you know what the service is like.

[Cruising-along]

There's nothing wrong with beating the rush and tipping your room stewards two or three days before the cruise ends. By that point in the voyage you know what the service is like.

 

Great point!

[momatibm]

I always hunt down both the steward and assistant -- and directly hand them the 'envelop'. I feel they should be told how much we appreciated them in words, not just my leaving an envelop.

 

The bar stewards and bartenders I treat the same way, as I do the waiters/assistants in the MDR.

[sail7seas]

Perhaps because we don't all think alike.

 

And may it always be........

 

That is the best thing about being an individual. :)

How boring if we were always on the 'same page'.

 

 

There's nothing wrong with beating the rush and tipping your room stewards two or three days before the cruise ends. By that point in the voyage you know what the service is like.

 

Very good point. :)

 

[Boytjie]

This is the only time we leave an envelop on the bed the last night of the cruise.

 

We put in it twenties and tens and let them decide between who gets what.

 

How much depends on the length of the cruise as well as the service.

 

We put tips for our two cabin stewards in two separate envelopes so that there will not be any confusion. Without saying something when giving one envelope ("this is for both of you") they could easily think that it was meant just for them.

 

We always take Chinese red envelopes for our tips and they seem to get a kick out of it. While it is a Chinese tradition they do seem to know what it means. :)

[albingirl]

We do, in fact, hand them cash during the voyage if they are doing something special for us. We aren't hard people; we recognize good service. It's simply confusing sometimes at the end of the cruise when people talk about throwing around hundred dollar bills. My husband always says that we tipped already. We did. We're not big shots throwing around money. Sometimes, after a long cruise, we've had the bar staff yell out, "hey, didn't we take care of you?". It's totally embarrassing.